Quebec

Québec is probably what all North America would have been like if the French had won the Seven Years' War. This eastern province has always been able to find an excuse for a party. Its historic capital, Québec City, for example, celebrates one of the world's most brutal winters with a carnival that features parades of majorettes and teams who race boats across an ice-choked river. Throughout the province, the rest of the year is full of festivals celebrating jazz, international folklore, film, classical music, fireworks, beer, and hot-air balloons. What really sets Québec apart, of course, is language. French in Québec is more than the language of love—it's the language of law, business, politics, and culture, and of more than 80% of the people.

EXPLORE QUEBEC

Montreal

Canada's most diverse metropolis, Montréal, is an island city that favors style and elegance over order or even prosperity, a…